Written Answers Wednesday 15 June 2005

Scottish Executive

Communities Scotland

Karen Whitefield (Airdrie and Shotts) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans for considering the location of Communities Scotland.

Malcolm Chisholm: Communities Scotland is a key delivery arm of the Executive and its recently published Corporate Plan sets out the vital role that it has in delivering our housing and regeneration policies.

  Communities Scotland has about 500 staff working from eight locations around Scotland, of whom about 220 are currently based outside Edinburgh. The remaining staff are located in three offices in Edinburgh City Centre engaged on a range of national, local and headquarters functions. In line with our relocation policy we have been considering the location of these Edinburgh functions and have concluded that 100-110 posts engaged on housing investment, community regeneration and regulation and inspection of social landlords will transfer from Edinburgh to Glasgow by the end of 2007. The headquarters of Communities Scotland will remain in Edinburgh, together with a local office.

  I acknowledge the impact this decision will have on the staff involved and Communities Scotland management are in discussions with staff. However, I believe that this plan has considerable benefits in bringing our service delivery closer to stakeholders.

Community Care

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive why trade unions and Community Care Providers Scotland were not equal partners in determining the phases which make up the Strategic Funding Review.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Strategic Funding review was announced in 2002 and carried out in partnership with COSLA and SCVO. Throughout each stage of the review, partners were encouraged to consult with their relevant stakeholders.

  The view was that the key participants were those who provided funds and those who were in receipt of funds. Community Care Providers Scotland were represented on Working Group 1 of the Review. Other stakeholders may have sought their views during consultation.

  Further information about the review, including a full list of members, can be found at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/viu.

Education

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-8993 by Mr Sam Galbraith on 22 August 2000, how many (a) primary 1 to 3 and (b) primary 4 to 7 classes in each local authority area contain more than 30 pupils.

Peter Peacock: The information requested is provided in the following table. The Education (Lower Primary Class Sizes) (Scotland) Regulations 1999 phased in the P1 to P3 class size maxima of 30 pupils between 1999 and 2001.

  The 1999 regulations also provide for certain exceptions to the 30 pupil maximum, "excepted pupils", who are not counted for the purposes of ascertaining whether the limit is exceeded. The normal class size maximum for P4 to P7 is 33 pupils.

  Number of Single Stage Classes with 30 or Fewer Pupils and Composite Classes with 25 or Fewer Pupils, September 2004 (Given as a Percentage of All Classes)

  

 
 All classes
 P1-P3 classes greater than 30 pupils
 P4-P7 classes greater than 30 pupils
 Composite classes greater than 25 pupils
 % classes where P1-P3 greater than 30 pupils
 % classes where P4-P7 greater than 30 pupils


 Aberdeen City
 547
 0
 28
 1
 0.0
 5.1


 Aberdeen shire
 885
 0
 38
 3
 0.0
 4.3


 Angus
 378
 3
 29
 4
 0.8
 7.7


 Argyll and Bute
 348
 1
 8
 0
 0.3
 2.3


 Clackmannanshire
 160
 3
 22
 2
 1.9
 13.8


 Dumfries and Galloway
 507
 0
 32
 2
 0.0
 6.3


 Dundee City
 399
 5
 38
 1
 1.3
 9.5


 East Ayrshire
 402
 1
 40
 0
 0.2
 10.0


 East Dunbartonshire
 373
 1
 25
 0
 0.3
 6.7


 East Lothian
 309
 0
 15
 0
 0.0
 4.9


 East Renfrewshire
 332
 8
 44
 0
 2.4
 13.3


 Edinburgh, City of
 1,051
 0
 74
 4
 0.0
 7.0


 Eilean Siar
 155
 0
 1
 0
 0.0
 0.6


 Falkirk
 463
 4
 51
 0
 0.9
 11.0


 Fife
 1,172
 1
 92
 1
 0.1
 7.8


 Glasgow City
 1,691
 4
 136
 3
 0.2
 8.0


 Highland
 840
 0
 30
 4
 0.0
 3.6


 Inverclyde
 264
 2
 22
 0
 0.8
 8.3


 Midlothian
 279
 0
 18
 0
 0.0
 6.5


 Moray
 320
 1
 13
 0
 0.3
 4.1


 North Ayrshire
 447
 2
 39
 0
 0.4
 8.7


 North Lanarkshire
 1,157
 2
 79
 0
 0.2
 6.8


 Orkney Islands
 90
 0
 4
 0
 0.0
 4.4


 Perth and Kinross
 458
 7
 25
 9
 1.5
 5.5


 Renfrewshire
 552
 0
 53
 0
 0.0
 9.6


 Scottish Borders
 385
 4
 13
 8
 1.0
 3.4


 Shetland Islands
 120
 0
 0
 0
 0.0
 0.0


 South Ayrshire
 350
 0
 39
 0
 0.0
 11.1


 South Lanarkshire
 1,039
 8
 109
 0
 0.8
 10.5


 Stirling
 294
 0
 18
 1
 0.0
 6.1


 West Dunbartonshire
 309
 1
 18
 0
 0.3
 5.8


 West Lothian
 591
 3
 66
 0
 0.5
 11.2


 Grant aided
 17
 0
 8
 0
 0.0
 47.1



  The data was collected as part of the September 2004 School Census.

Education

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many teachers in secondary schools have been assaulted by students since 1997, broken down by local authority area.

Peter Peacock: The Scottish Executive has not collected statistics for physical assaults only. The number of incidents reported to the police however may be an indication of the level of concern in Scottish schools about assaults and other serious incidents. 301 incidents were reported to the police in total in 2002-03, although this figure describes all incidents reported to the police by schools, such as vandalism, theft and assault, and incidents may have involved teaching and non-teaching staff.

Education

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many educational psychologists have been employed by each local authority in each year since 1999.

Peter Peacock: The full-time equivalent (FTE) numbers of educational psychologists in September 1999, 2003 and 2004 are shown in the following table. Data for 2000 to 2002 were not collected. The figures below indicate an 11% increase in numbers since 1999. Current figures represent an all-time high for the number of educational psychologists employed in Scottish local authorities.

  

 Local Authority Area
 September 1999
 September 2003
 September 2004


 Aberdeen City
 12
 14
 16


 Aberdeenshire
 17
 17
 17


 Angus
 7
 7
 8


 Argyll and Bute
 6
 7
 7


 Clackmannanshire
 5
 7
 6


 Dumfries and Galloway
 7
 11
 8


 Dundee City
 11
 13
 13


 East Ayrshire2
 7
 9
 9


 East Dunbartonshire
 7
 7
 8


 East Lothian
 6
 9
 7


 East Renfrewshire
 7
 12
 11


 Edinburgh, City of
 27
 35
 35


 Eilean Siar
 3
 3
 3


 Falkirk
 8
 10
 12


 Fife
 31
 25
 25


 Glasgow City
 58
 50
 54


 Highland
 13
 16
 16


 Inverclyde
 6
 7
 8


 Midlothian2
 6
 8
 8


 Moray
 7
 8
 8


 North Ayrshire
 11
 12
 11


 North Lanarkshire3
 23
 24
 25


 Orkney Islands
 2
 2
 1


 Perth and Kinross
 9
 9
 9


 Renfrewshire
 11
 13
 13


 Scottish Borders
 6
 7
 7


 Shetland Islands2
 2
 1
 1


 South Ayrshire
 8
 7
 9


 South Lanarkshire
 18
 20
 20


 Stirling
 6
 7
 8


 West Dunbartonshire
 7
 9
 9


 West Lothian2
 11
 14
 12


 Scotland
 364
 398
 403



  Notes:

  1. Figures taken from SC6 collection for 1999 and "Teachers in Scotland" for 2003 and 2004. Scotland figure may not appear to be the total of local authorities due to rounding of FTE figures.

  2. 1999 data not available for these authorities, 1998 data has been used.

  3. North Lanarkshire 2003 data taken from vacancy survey rather than teacher census, as believed to be more accurate.

Football

Dennis Canavan (Falkirk West) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive how much public money has been spent on football in each financial year since 1999 and whether it will provide an appropriate breakdown of this expenditure.

Patricia Ferguson: Exchequer funding to the Scottish Football Association and to football which was paid through spor tscotland is:

  

 Year 
 Annual Development Grant Aid £ 
 Sportsmatch (£) 
 Hampden** (£) 


 SFA 
 SWFA (via SFA) 


 1999-2000 
 48,000 
 18,000 
 44,202 
 2,750,000 


 2000-01 
 48,000 
 18,000 
 44,832 
 - 


 2001-02 
 48,000 
 18,000 
 117,968 
 


 2002-03 
 100,000 
 18,000 
 72,800 
 - 


 2003-04 
 100,000 
 18,000 
 80,244 
 - 


 2004-05 
 100,000 
 28,500* 
 56,004 
 - 


 Total 
 444,000 
 118,500 
 416,050 
 2,750,000 



  Notes:

  *18 month award to December 2005 (Scottish Women’s Football Association).

  ** Restructuring package.

  The lottery funding paid by sportscotland to football, up to 31 March 2005, is:

  

 Year
 Talented Athlete Programme*
Junior Groups*(£)
National Coach Support(Coach Support from 2004)(£)
Performance Coach Development(Coach Support from 2004)(£)
Major Events(£)
Capital(£)
Awards for All(£)


 1999-2000
 126,000
 40,000
 
 8,089
 
 1,382,170
 189,125


 2000-01
 62,064
 23,333
 96,312
 1,529
 
 826,577
 126,005


 2001-02
 70,449
 53,171
 
 
 5,000
 2,692,082
 199,587


 2002-03
 59,653
 62,189
 115,320
 
 
 1,587,601
 223,452


 2003-04
 75,158
 
 
 
 
 707,415
 254,735


 2004-05
 25,000
 
 58,864
 
 
 479,020
 257,119


 Total
 418,324
 178,693
 270496
 9,618
 5,000
 7,674,865
 1,250,023



  Note: *This is now Athlete Support which forms part of new integrated annual development grant to the governing body.

  In addition, we have made available £12.2 million over 10 years to support the implementation of the Action Plan for Youth Football, comprising £1.2 million from million Exchequer; £1.0 million from million the Lottery Sports Fund and £10 million from million other lottery income.

  Football has also benefited from, and will continue to benefit from, other sports programmes and initiatives. For example, school football will be supported through various programmes operated by sportscotland such as Active Schools into which £12 million Exchequer funding is provided each year, and football will be one of the main beneficiaries of the network of national and regional sports facilities which will be developed over the next four years with the help of £50 million Exchequer and lottery funding.

Justice

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of offenders arrested for the possession of a knife in each year since 2000 were under the age of 18 in (a) Scotland and (b) each police force area.

Cathy Jamieson: Information on arrests is not held centrally. The available information, which relates to persons with a charge proved of handling an offensive weapon, is given in the following table.

  Persons with a Charge Proved in Scottish Courts for Handling an Offensive Weapon1, 2000-03: Percentage Where Offender Aged Under 18

  

 Police Force area
 Having in a Public Place an Article with a Blade or a Point
 Possession of an Offensive Weapon3


 2000
 2001
 2002
 20032
 2000
 2001
 2002
 20032


 Central 
 13
 18
 8
 9
 13
 11
 11
 6


 Dumfries and Galloway
 20
 8
 10
 14
 10
 16
 13
 14


 Fife 
 -
 10
 -
 -
 17
 9
 24
 11


 Grampian 
 11
 13
 14
 15
 3
 15
 8
 10


 Lothian and Borders 
 8
 16
 11
 8
 17
 17
 16
 17


 Northern 
 27
 12
 13
 12
 5
 17
 9
 10


 Strathclyde 
 13
 11
 10
 12
 15
 16
 14
 15


 Tayside 
 8
 8
 7
 17
 20
 19
 7
 14


 Scotland
 13
 12
 10
 11
 15
 16
 14
 14



  Notes:

  1. Where main offence.

  2. Includes estimated data.

  3. Knives cannot be identified separately from other types of offensive weapons in the data held for this crime category.

Justice

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many incidents of racially motivated hate crimes have been reported in the last five years, broken down by police force area.

Cathy Jamieson: Exact information on the numbers of racially motivated hate crimes is not available centrally. For information on the number of racially motivated incidents I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-15791 on 10 May 2005, as corrected by the reply to question S2W-17089 on 13 June 2005. However, these figures include all such incidents, some of which would not have lead to the recording of a crime. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

  The recorded crime statistics collected centrally cannot distinguish the motive behind the crimes, such as assault, and therefore information on the total numbers of racially motivated hate crimes recorded by the police is not available centrally. However, the available information on the numbers of offences recorded by the police of racially aggravated harassment and racially aggravated conduct is shown by police force area in table A7 of the statistical bulletin Recorded Crime in Scotland, 2003, copies of which are available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 33018).

Life Expectancy

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what its latest estimate is of (a) male and (b) female life expectancy for people aged 65 years in (i) 2010, (ii) 2020, (iii) 2030, (iv) 2040, (v) 2050 and (vi) 2060, broken down by local authority area.

Tavish Scott: The following table gives projected period expectations of life at age 65 for men and women in Scotland for the calendar years 2010, 2020, 2030, 2040, 2050 and 2060. Projected life expectancy figures are not produced for local authority areas because of the imprecision of calculating life expectancies for smaller populations.

  These figures are calculated using projected mortality rates taken from the latest, 2003-based, population projections for Scotland. The period expectation of life figures shown are based on the mortality rates projected by age and gender for the years stated and are the number of years people would be expected to live from age 65 if they experienced those mortality rates throughout their remaining lifetimes.

  Period Expectation of Life for Men and Women at Age 65 in the Year Shown, Scotland

  

 Year
 Males
 Females


 2010
 16.9
 19.5


 2020
 18.2
 21.0


 2030
 19.1
 21.9


 2040
 19.7
 22.5


 2050
 20.3
 23.0


 2060
 20.6
 23.4

NHS Funding

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the total funding for the NHS was in each year since 2000, expressed in cash and real terms at 1998-99 prices.

Mr Andy Kerr: Expenditure on health in Scotland since 2000-01 is set out in the table.

  

 Year 
 Expenditure (£000) 
 Expenditure at 1998-99 Prices (£000) 


 2000-01 
 5,379,811 
 5,204,606 


 2001-02 
 6,198,221 
 5,847,473 


 2002-03 
 6,632,881 
 6,049,883 


 2003-04 
 7,138,352 
 6,327,578 


 2004-05 
 8,080,620 
 7,023,753 



  The expenditure figure for 2000-01 is on a cash basis but, following the Government wide change to resource accounting and budgeting, those for 2001-02 onwards are on a resource basis which includes non-cash items such as capital charges and depreciation. The figures for 2001-02 and 2002-03 include capital charges at 6% while those for 2003-04 onwards reflect a Government wide reduction in capital charges to 3.5%. The figure for 2004-05 is the budget following the Spring Budget Revision because audited accounts for 2004-05 are not yet available.

NHS Funding

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the annual percentage real terms increase in funding was for the health service in each year since 2000.

Mr Andy Kerr: Annual percentage real terms increases in expenditure on health in Scotland since 2000-01 are set out in the following table.

  

 Year 
 Real Terms Increase 


 2000-01 
 7.6% 


 2001-02 
 12.4% 


 2002-03 
 3.5% 


 2003-04 
 4.6% 


 2004-05 
 11.0% 



  Due to the introduction of resource accounting and budgeting in 2001-02 and the reduction of capital charges from 6% to 3.5% in 2003-04, these percentage increases should not be used for direct comparison purposes. The percentage increase for 2004-05 is based on the budget following the Spring Budget Revision because audited accounts for 2004-05 are not yet available.

NHS Staff

Elaine Smith (Coatbridge and Chryston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many nurses and midwives have been recruited from Africa to the NHS in Scotland in each year since 2000.

Mr Andy Kerr: Figures detailing "country of origin" of internationally qualified nurses (IQN’s) are not held centrally. There has been no active or targeted recruitment by NHSScotland of nurses and midwives from Africa. It is known that there are some African IQN’s within the health service but they will have applied for positions on an individual basis whilst domiciled in Scotland and are entitled to do so.

NHS Staff

Elaine Smith (Coatbridge and Chryston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it has given to the introduction of a code of practice covering the recruitment of overseas health care staff to the NHS in Scotland.

Mr Andy Kerr: The Scottish Executive has consulted with NHSScotland on the adoption and implementation of a code of practice for international recruitment of health care professionals. A partnership approach will be taken through the Human Resources Forum (HRF), to discuss implications on whether the code should be voluntary or compulsory.

NHS Staff

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many consultant posts are currently vacant and, of these, how many have been vacant for over six months, broken down by specialty and NHS board area.

Mr Andy Kerr: Within "All Medical Specialties", the number of consultants in post within NHS Scotland has increased by 14.6% between 1999 and 2004, from 2,835.9 whole-time equivalents (WTE) to 3,249.8 WTE. At 30 September 2004, for "All Medical Specialties", there were 276.4 WTE vacant consultant posts, of which 109.1 WTE had been vacant for six months or more.

  Information on staff in post and vacancies in NHS Scotland is published on the Scottish Health Statistics website under Workforce Statistics, at www.isdscotland.org/workforce.

  Section B gives vacancy information for consultants employed in NHS Scotland. In particular, table B11 shows the whole-time equivalent, the vacancy rate and the over six month vacancy rate, shown as a percentage of the establishment, broken down by specialty and NHS board. The latest available figures are at 30 September 2004.

NHS Staff

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-2493 by Malcolm Chisholm on 6 October 2003, how many vacancies there were for (a) consultant radiologists and (b) radiographers in (i) 2003 and (ii) 2004, broken down by NHS board.

Mr Andy Kerr: Between 1999 and 2004, the number of consultant radiologists in post has increased by almost 15% and the number of qualified radiographers has increased by 9%.

  Information on staff in post and vacancies in NHS Scotland is published on the Scottish Health Statistics website under Workforce Statistics, at www.isdscotland.org/workforce.

  Section B gives vacancy information for consultants employed in NHS Scotland. In particular, table B11 shows the consultant vacancies in "Radiology" by NHS board for years 2001 to 2004. The latest available figures are correct at 30 September 2004.

  Section F gives vacancy information for Allied Health Professionals employed in NHS Scotland. Table F5 shows the total vacancies for radiographers, shown as a percentage of the establishment, broken down by specialty and NHS board for the years 1996 to 2004. The latest available figures are at 31 March 2004.

NHS Staff

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many vacancies there were for consultant anaesthetists in each of the last five years, broken down by NHS board.

Mr Andy Kerr: Between 1999 and 2004, within NHS Scotland, the consultant anaesthetist establishment increased by 19.5%.

  Information on staff in post and vacancies in NHS Scotland is published on the Scottish Health Statistics website under Workforce Statistics, at www.isdscotland.org/workforce.

  Section B gives vacancy information for consultants employed in NHS Scotland. In particular, table B11 shows the total vacancies for consultant anaesthetists, shown as a percentage of the establishment, broken down by NHS board for years 2001 to 2004. The latest available figures are at 30 September 2004.

NHS Staff

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many vacancies there were for (a) podiatrists, (b) dieticians, (c) occupational therapists, (d) speech and language therapists, (e) orthoptists, (f) physiotherapists, (g) prosthetists and orthotists and (h) art, drama and music therapists in each year since 1999, broken down by NHS board area.

Mr Andy Kerr: The Scottish Executive remains committed to building the capacity of the NHS workforce in Scotland.

  Information on staff in post and vacancies in NHS Scotland is published on the Scottish Health Statistics website under Workforce Statistics, at www.isdscotland.org/workforce.

  Section F gives vacancy information for Allied Health Professionals, including those professionals referred to in the question, employed in NHS Scotland. In particular, table F5 shows the total vacancies shown as a percentage of the establishment, broken down by specialty and NHS board for years 1996 to 2004. Latest available figures are at 31 March 2004.

National Health Service

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many clinical negligence claims have been made against NHS bodies in each year since 1997.

Mr Andy Kerr: Information on the number of clinical negligence claims made against NHSScotland in each financial year since 1997 is not held centrally.

National Health Service

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much compensation NHS bodies have paid in respect of clinical negligence claims in each year since 1997.

Mr Andy Kerr: The information held centrally on claim settlements made after April 2000 does not differentiate between clinical and non-clinical claims. The cost of settlements made in relation to clinical and, where appropriate, non-clinical claims against NHSScotland in each financial year since 1997-98 is detailed in the table.

  

 Year
Claim Settlements(£)


 1997-98
 3,521,199 


 1998-99
 3,307,629 


 1999-2000
 2,955,357 


 2000-01
 3,925,462 


 2001-02
 6,462,315 


 2002-03
 8,720,709 


 2003-04
 8,307,471 


 2004-05
 8,320,412

National Health Service

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much NHS trusts have paid in respect of legal fees in clinical negligence cases in each year since 1997.

Mr Andy Kerr: The information held centrally on the payment of legal expenses made after April 2000 does not differentiate between clinical claims and non-clinical claims. The cost of legal expenses made in relation to clinical and, where appropriate, non-clinical claims against NHSScotland in each financial year since 1997-98 is detailed in the following table.

  

 Year
 Legal Expenses (£)


 1997-98
 623,936 


 1998-99
 647,784 


 1999-2000
 555,778 


 2000-01
 890,870 


 2001-02
 815,534 


 2002-03
 808,187 


 2003-04
 1,574,983 


 2004-05
 1,768,844

Police

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the uniformed police (a) establishment and (b) strength was and how many police probationers there were in each police force in each year from 2001 to 2005.

Cathy Jamieson: Central Government stopped setting establishments for Police forces in 1996. Since then, the number of officers in any force has been set by individual chief constables based on operational requirements.

  Police strength figures (whole-time equivalent) for 2001 to 2005 are shown in the following table.

  

 Force 
 Police Strength as at 31 March 


 2001 
 2002 
 2003 
 2004 
 2005 


 Central 
 728 
 715 
 732 
 760 
 832 


 Dumfries and Galloway 
 474 
 477 
 477 
 488 
 480 


 Fife 
 849 
 905 
 928 
 980 
 996 


 Grampian 
 1,259 
 1,243 
 1,268 
 1,338 
 1,370 


 Lothian and Borders 
 2,645 
 2,671 
 2,682 
 2,748 
 2,803 


 Northern 
 666 
 681 
 687 
 683 
 702 


 Strathclyde 
 7,287 
 7,287 
 7,426 
 7,430 
 7,668 


 Tayside 
 1,151 
 1,163 
 1,159 
 1,156 
 1,166 



  Source: Quarterly Strength Returns from forces.

  The number of probationers in each force from 2001 to 2005 is not held centrally.

Prison Service

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the costs of education services were in each prison operated by the Scottish Prison Service in each of the last five years.

Cathy Jamieson: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  The information is given in the following table:

  

 
£ Million


 1999-2000
 1.6


 2000-01
 1.6


 2001-02
 2.0


 2002-03
 2.3


 2003-04
 2.9



  Figures for individual prisons are not available.

Prison Service

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S2W-8626 and S2W-16509 by Cathy Jamieson on 11 June 2004 and 26 May 2005, why information on the time it took to return prisoners released in error by Reliance Secure Task Management Ltd to police custody was provided in answer to S2W-8628 but not in answer to S2W-16509.

Cathy Jamieson: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:

  Although the SPS knows when prisoners are returned to prison custody, we do not know when the prisoner is returned to police custody. Question S2W-8626 gave the date that one prisoner was returned to police custody because in that sole case we did know because of the intense media interest following the implementation of the contract.

Roads

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding would be required by each local authority to address the backlog of pavement and footway repairs.

Mr Tom McCabe: Information on funding requirements for pavements and footway repairs by local authorities is not held centrally. It is for local authorities to decide on their own expenditure priorities based on local needs and circumstances.

  Following the Spending Review in 2004, an additional £60 millions is being provided in each of 2006-07 and 2007-08 for additional maintenance on local roads. Compared to the allowance made against this heading in 2004-05, this represents an increase of over 23%.

Roads

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much money was spent (a) in total and (b) by each local authority on roads maintenance in each of the last five years.

Mr Tom McCabe: The following tables give expenditure on roads maintenance in total and by local authority in each of the last five years. The first table shows the revenue expenditure and the second shows the capital expenditure. Following the Spending Review in 2004, an additional £60 million is being provided in each of 2006-07 and 2007-08 for additional maintenance on local roads. Compared to the allowance made against this heading in 2004-05, this represents an increase of over 23%.

  Gross Expenditure on Roads Maintenance Scotland and Local Authorities 1999-2000 to 2003-04

  

 
Revenue 


 1999-2000 (£000) 
 2000-01 (£000) 
 2001-02 (£000) 
 2002-03 (£000) 
 2003-04 
  (£000) 


 Aberdeen City 
 7,220 
 6,657 
 6,952 
 9,030 
 10,733 


 Aberdeenshire 
 18,008 
 19,397 
 16,510 
 19,391 
 23,396 


 Angus 
 4,859 
 6,027 
 4,703 
 7,567 
 5,355 


 Argyll and Bute 
 8,901 
 9,121 
 8,873 
 11,456 
 11,522 


 Clackmannanshire 
 1,000 
 1,010 
 1,010 
 1,342 
 1,749 


 Dumfries and Galloway 
 6,592 
 6,468 
 10,006 
 12,546 
 11,821 


 Dundee City 
 3,249 
 3,725 
 3,674 
 4,126 
 4,887 


 East Ayrshire 
 5,296 
 5,664 
 4,927 
 6,209 
 7,371 


 East Dunbartonshire 
 3,387 
 3,924 
 4,246 
 5,166 
 4,089 


 East Lothian 
 6,419 
 3,836 
 8,198 
 5,215 
 5,043 


 East Renfrewshire 
 2,733 
 2,346 
 2,746 
 5,258 
 4,983 


 Edinburgh City 
 11,874 
 12,062 
 11,304 
 16,134 
 11,382 


 Eilean Siar 
 4,720 
 5,175 
 4,463 
 5,591 
 5,544 


 Falkirk 
 3,226 
 3,440 
 3,716 
 3,678 
 5,118 


 Fife 
 8,431 
 10,490 
 11,733 
 15,214 
 16,756 


 Glasgow City 
 18,748 
 20,771 
 21,548 
 29,782 
 26,572 


 Highland 
 20,206 
 18,441 
 14,241 
 21,116 
 17,543 


 Inverclyde 
 2,079 
 2,420 
 2,014 
 2,485 
 2,482 


 Midlothian 
 4,042 
 3,943 
 3,259 
 3,373 
 3,320 


 Moray 
 4,446 
 6,002 
 5,356 
 6,803 
 7,653 


 North Ayrshire 
 2,934 
 3,098 
 4,389 
 5,456 
 5,802 


 North Lanarkshire 
 6,412 
 6,945 
 9,641 
 14,074 
 11,597 


 Orkney 
 5,129 
 4,335 
 3,127 
 3,691 
 3,918 


 Perth and Kinross 
 9,002 
 9,499 
 8,282 
 9,460 
 9,960 


 Renfrewshire 
 6,217 
 7,175 
 7,203 
 7,527 
 7,855 


 Scottish Borders 
 7,147 
 8,666 
 7,043 
 8,521 
 9,647 


 Shetland 
 6,984 
 8,766 
 5,405 
 5,591 
 5,769 


 South Ayrshire 
 4,796 
 4,993 
 4,974 
 5,794 
 4,539 


 South Lanarkshire 
 14,839 
 15,476 
 15,240 
 17,410 
 18,420 


 Stirling 
 5,106 
 5,891 
 4,303 
 5,760 
 5,393 


 West Dunbartonshire 
 3,543 
 3,663 
 3,315 
 3,577 
 3,414 


 West Lothian 
 5,473 
 5,759 
 6,212 
 7,532 
 8,232 


 Scotland 
 223,019 
 235,186 
 228,613 
 285,875 
 281,865 



  Note: Source – returns submitted by local authorities.

  Structural Maintenance of Roads: Gross Payments Not Funded from Revenue Scotland and Local Authority 1999-2000 to 2003-04

  

 
 Capital


 1999-2000 
  (£000) 
 2000-01 
  (£000) 
 2001-02 
  (£000) 
 2002-03 
  (£000) 
 2003-04 
  (£000) 


 Aberdeen City 
 1,373 
 1,757 
 1,073 
 261 
 1,311 


 Aberdeenshire 
 - 
 - 
 1,518 
 2,223 
 2,716 


 Angus 
 - 
 - 
 369 
 228 
 1,977 


 Argyll and Bute 
 1,141 
 1,491 
 1,494 
 1,028 
 1,351 


 Clackmannanshire 
 - 
 - 
 290 
 270 
 348 


 Dumfries and Galloway 
 - 
 146 
 - 
 - 
 939 


 Dundee City 
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 


 East Ayrshire 
 368 
 558 
 1,475 
 1,339 
 1,356 


 East Dunbartonshire 
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 


 East Lothian 
 - 
 380 
 1,622 
 1,241 
 1,508 


 East Renfrewshire 
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 


 Edinburgh City 
 3,286 
 4,634 
 4,994 
 8,455 
 13,772 


 Eilean Siar 
 1,338 
 1,595 
 1,563 
 1,776 
 2,195 


 Falkirk 
 1,347 
 1,298 
 1,673 
 900 
 1,997 


 Fife 
 6,255 
 5,599 
 5,411 
 4,147 
 2,519 


 Glasgow City 
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 


 Highland 
 - 
 480 
 1,376 
 2,884 
 2,003 


 Inverclyde 
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 


Midlothian
 773 
 242 
 - 
 - 
 349 


Moray
 1,341 
 1,452 
 1,573 
 861 
 761 


North Ayrshire
 308 
 1,029 
 638 
 737 
 459 


North Lanarkshire
 6 
 1,402 
 2,596 
 1,411 
 1,400 


Orkney
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 


Perth and Kinross
 630 
 862 
 2,245 
 2,135 
 1,995 


Renfrewshire
 1,019 
 295 
 229 
 205 
 31 


Scottish Borders
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 


Shetland
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 
 - 


South Ayrshire
 208 
 348 
 - 
 - 
 1 


South Lanarkshire
 249 
 1,077 
 67 
 - 
 - 


Stirling
 1,481 
 1,075 
 699 
 2 
 - 


West Dunbartonshire
 95 
 155 
 476 
 707 
 940 


West Lothian
 - 
 - 
 - 
 
 - 


Scotland
 21,218 
 25,875 
 31,381 
 30,810 
 39,928 



  Source – returns submitted by local authorities.

  Note: Revenue contributions to capital are not included - they are accounted for in the revenue table above.

Roads

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much money was spent (a) in total and (b) by each local authority on pavement and footway maintenance in each of the last five years.

Mr Tom McCabe: Information on the amount of local authority spending on pavement and footway maintenance is not held centrally. It is up to each local authority how it allocates its funding, taking account of national priorities as well as local needs and priorities.

Roads

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the grant aided expenditure was for roads maintenance (a) in total and (b) for each local authority in each of the last five years.

Mr Tom McCabe: Provision of GAE (Grant Aided Expenditure) in respect of road maintenance (a) in total and (b) for each local authority in each of the last five years are shown in the following table .

  

Council
2000-01 (£000)
2001-02 (£000)
2002-03 (£000)
2003-04 (£000)
2004-05 
  (£000)


Aberdeen City
3,940
3,909
4,138
4,347
4,416


Aberdeenshire
10,267
9,967
10,550
11,085
11,444


Angus
3,486
3,420
3,620
3,804
3,905


Argyll and Bute
4,899
4,751
5,029
5,284
5,697


Clackmannanshire
1,036
1,049
1,110
1,166
1,242


Dumfries and Galloway
7,268
6,964
7,372
7,745
7,895


Dundee City
2,166
2,177
2,305
2,422
2,503


East Ayrshire
2,758
2,741
2,901
3,049
3,187


East Dunbartonshire
2,196
2,236
2,367
2,487
2,572


East Lothian
2,216
2,204
2,333
2,451
2,573


East Renfrewshire
1,775
1,836
1,943
2,042
2,120


Edinburgh, City of
8,169
8,610
9,115
9,576
9,950


Eilean Siar
2,572
2,425
2,567
2,697
2,752


Falkirk
2,856
3,015
3,192
3,353
3,558


Fife
7,568
7,679
8,129
8,540
9,045


Glasgow City
7,809
8,317
8,804
9,250
9,793


Highland
12,374
11,863
12,558
13,195
13,502


Inverclyde
1,255
1,281
1,356
1,425
1,488


Midlothian
1,900
1,927
2,040
2,144
2,222


Moray
3,175
3,085
3,266
3,431
3,553


North Ayrshire
2,800
2,796
2,959
3,109
3,248


North Lanarkshire
5,247
5,294
5,604
5,888
6,265


Orkney Islands
1,643
1,555
1,647
1,730
1,755


Perth and Kinross
5,020
4,897
5,184
5,446
5,639


Renfrewshire
3,116
3,155
3,340
3,509
3,666


Scottish Borders
5,221
5,038
5,333
5,603
5,779


Shetland Islands
1,678
1,580
1,673
1,758
1,791


South Ayrshire
2,884
2,856
3,023
3,176
3,287


South Lanarkshire
6,356
6,355
6,727
7,068
7,409


Stirling
4,343
4,347
4,601
4,835
4,661


West Dunbartonshire
1,438
1,462
1,547
1,626
1,721


West Lothian
3,615
3,716
3,933
4,133
4,316


Scotland
133,046
132,507
140,268
147,365
152,954



  Note: GAE allocations are neither budgets nor spending targets. They are simply inputs to the methodology, agreed between the Scottish Executive and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, which is used to distribute total provision for core services by the Executive amongst Scotland’s 32 councils. Once the total grant support figure for each council has been calculated, it is then for each council to decide how much it spends on individual services based on its own assessment of local needs and priorities.

Roads

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the grant aided expenditure was for pavement and footway maintenance (a) in total and (b) for each local authority in each of the last five years.

Mr Tom McCabe: There is no separate provision for pavement and footway maintenance in the grant aided expenditure calculations. Instead, such provision is contained within other headings, including road and winter maintenance. It is for each local authority to decide on its own spending on individual services based on its assessment of local needs and priorities.

Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body

Broadcasting

Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether coverage of Westminster committees and debates will be made accessible from members’ offices.

John Scott MSP (Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body): Television coverage of Westminster proceedings is provided on Channel 612 (BBC Parliament) of Holyrood’s in-houseTV network.

  This station provides coverage of all of the House of Commons Chamber proceedings, much of the House of Lords’ proceedings and a selection of Parliamentary committees. However, committee coverage is limited and its scope is determined by the BBC.

  Recognising this limitation, the Parliament’s BIT Office are currently piloting a solution that will allow access to Westminster’s webcasting services directly from PCs in Holyrood. It is expected that the solution will be rolled out during the summer recess.

Energy Efficiency

Chris Ballance (South of Scotland) (Green): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what plans it has to reduce energy use in the Parliament building in the next 12 months.

John Scott MSP (Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body): The SPCB will be developing an Energy Strategy to reduce energy use within the building. This will include optimisation of the building management computer and lighting management computer systems. An energy audit will be undertaken to identify areas of inefficiency and a communication plan rolled out to encourage all building occupants to contribute towards the efficient running of the building.

Holyrood Building

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what action it is taking in respect of the recommendations made by Lord Fraser in his report into the Holyrood parliament building project.

Robert Brown MSP (Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body): The SPCB’s response to Lord Fraser’s Inquiry was set out in the Presiding Officer’s letter of 24 February 2005 to the Convener of the Finance Committee and was considered by that committee at its meeting on 1 March 2005. In brief, the SPCB undertook to apply the principles of Lord Fraser’s recommendations to its procurement activity as appropriate (while recognising that, in practice, these were mainly directed at the control of major construction projects and were largely for the Scottish Executive); we did not think it necessary to seek an amendment of the Scotland Act 1998 to provide wider powers of delegation as recommended by Lord Fraser, and negotiations with RMJM on the provision of a guarantee had commenced. The Finance Committee did not comment or make any recommendations on this matter.

Holyrood Building

Cathy Peattie (Falkirk East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether it will review the audibility of debates for people in the public gallery of the Chamber, in particular for those using the wheelchair spaces and the induction loop system.

Duncan McNeil MSP (Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body): I had the pleasure of appearing before the Parliament’s Equal Opportunity Committee on 24 May when this, among other issues, was raised by members. The SPCB positively encourages feedback from building users. From this exercise we recognised that the sound amplification levels in the Chamber and the committee room could be improved. Consequently, we are planning improvements. These would involve the addition of up to eight small and discreet overhead loud speakers in the Chamber. It is intended that these would supplement the loud speakers currently situated under the seats in the public gallery. This arrangement is not dissimilar, in principle, to what we have already done on a temporary basis for a number of special events in the Chamber, such as the opening ceremony.

  In the case of the committee rooms, a broadly similar solution is proposed with the installation of two additional small loud speakers in each committee room. The precise location and specification would vary according to the room in question. The improvements we are planning to undertake are subject to aesthetic and health and safety considerations, but subject to these being resolved, the work should be carried out over the summer recess.

  In relation to the induction loop system specifically, as members may be aware, some problems have previously occurred with the system. One of the key problems was the loss of the audio feed from the amplifier which feeds into the induction loop system in the Chamber gallery during the deaf blind debate on 9 March 2005. This incident was investigated and rectified in conjunction with our contractor. We are confident that the systems installed are good and provide a high quality sound enhancement service for those who require it in the public gallery and indeed elsewhere in the campus, for example, the crèche, the shop, the public restaurant and the education room.

  Weekly checks on these systems located in committee rooms are undertaken and the Chamber systems are checked prior to every Chamber session. This means that the system is currently checked three times per week. These checks enable us to resolve as quickly as possible any problems before they cause difficulties for those requiring the system.

  In relation to the spaces reserved for wheelchair users in the gallery, we specifically involved groups of disabled people in our live testing of this Chamber. The feedback received included the suggestion that acoustic glass would assist in reducing the noise of those coming and going in the Chamber gallery. In December 2004, in consequence of this recommendation, we installed a glass barrier to assist in reducing the noise.

  As I stated at your committee, MSPs who arrange visits for their constituents have an obligation to alert parliamentary officials well in advance to ensure that the appropriate facilities for those who need them are provided.

  We continue to keep these matters under review in response to the welcome feedback we receive from visitors.

MSP Staff

Christine May (Central Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what action is being taken to reduce delays in the granting of full security clearance for interns and new staff employed by MSPs.

John Scott MSP (Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body): Security passes allowing free access into and throughout the Parliament can be issued only when a security clearance has been obtained.

  Security checks are undertaken by the UK security authorities, in a thorough professional manner.

  Delays are inevitable, especially when there is an overseas connection, which requires consultation with overseas security authorities.

  Safety and security is of paramount importance.

  The current security clearance system is in place to ensure a safe and secure environment for all who access the Parliament.

  However, members will be aware that we have commissioned a wide ranging review of our security arrangements and this will be one of a wide range of issues that will be considered.

  SPCB would want to give full consideration to any change that might endanger our security arrangements.

MSP Staff

Donald Gorrie (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Presiding Officer whether it will create a centrally provided training fund for the staff of MSPs similar to that which is provided at Westminster for the staff of MPs.

Duncan McNeil MSP (Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body): Mr Gorrie will be aware that members, as employers in their own right, are primarily responsible for the training of their own employees. The members’ Support Allowance within the Allowances Scheme approved by the Parliament provides for the cost of staff and volunteer training costs to be met from that allowance. This enables an MSP to determine the training appropriate for his/her own staff.

  In addition to this the SPCB does provide a range of training for MSPs’ staff. For example: induction, IT, and training sessions on the use of the Parliament’s website.

  Taking account of the foregoing, the SPCB has no plans to create a centrally provided training fund as such and therefore has made no additional budget provision.

Parliamentary Proceedings

Nora Radcliffe (Gordon) (LD): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what action it will take to address problems in the availability of tickets for the public to watch parliamentary proceedings.

Andrew Welsh MSP (Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body): The main issue arises from the huge demand for tickets, which is to be welcomed.

  We acknowledge that there can be some specific difficulties for example for members seeking tickets for guests, and in the management of vacated seats to ensure best possible use of the public gallery.

  This is an evolving process and we are constantly looking at ways to improve it.

  For example already we have:

  Split group tickets into shorter time slots so that there are two sessions for each morning and afternoon debate including a slot for First Minister’s Questions. This has increased the numbers of visitors accessing the Chamber, and cut the level of "seat wastage".

  A cut-off point for customer collection of tickets has also been introduced. This means that any tickets not collected by members of the public within 30 minutes of the starting time for a debate are re-allocated.

  We are also encouraging visitors to return tickets when they leave the chamber, which are in turn re-allocated, increasing again the number of visitors.

  A review of visitor services is also planned and this will include a review of ticketing arrangements and how we might improve services to members across visitor services.

Parliamentary Staff

Carolyn Leckie (Central Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether it will make provision in its external contracts to bring the terms and conditions of staff employed by contractors in line with those of the staff it employs directly.

Duncan McNeil MSP (Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body): The SPCB provides core Parliamentary services in-house. It is also policy to ensure that best value for the taxpayers’ money is obtained in the provision of the goods and services required to enable the Parliament to carry out its functions. Competitive tendering procedures are used for a range of services. It is a condition of the tendering procedure that tenderers are asked to confirm that they comply with the terms of the Working Time Directive and minimum wage legislation.

  The Parliament does not employ plumbers and electricians and therefore could not compare wage rates against that of a contractor. What we are looking for is skills and competence to do the work required. The competition element ensures the best value approach which is in the interests of the Parliament and the public purse.